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  • Georgia Senators consider ending state income tax, proposal could raise sales tax to 12%

    Georgia Senators consider ending state income tax, proposal could raise sales tax to 12%

    Georgia Senators consider ending state income tax, proposal could raise sales tax to 12%

    A committee of Georgia state senators met for the fourth time on Monday to discuss the potential to eliminate Georgia’s income tax.

    State Sen. Blake Tillery, the committee chair, began the meeting by reminding those present why the senators were discussing this issue.

    “I think it’s evident if you’ve watched anything in recent news stories or even the recent elections that folks are really feeling the pinch in their own homes whether it be on groceries, gas, child care,” Tillery said.

    Georgia Public Policy Foundation President Kyle Wingfield testified before the committee, and highlighted benefits of eliminating the income tax in Georgia.

    “When you lower the rate and you do it on a permanent basis, you’re telling business owners, you’re telling entrepreneurs, you’re telling households, your money is going to go farther in the future than it used to,” he said. “That’s a powerful incentive for people to work more, to save more, and to invest more. And those three things are the lifeblood of our economy and the growth of our economies.”

    Patrice Onwuka, director of Independent Women’s Center for Economic Opportunity, said lifting the state income tax could specifically benefit women and the economy in Georgia.

    “We are a powerful economic agent as consumers, producers, and investors,” she said. “Women are very sensitive to tax policy. Now, number one, eliminating the income tax empowers women to cope with today’s affordability crisis.”

    The state would need to increase the sales tax rate to 12% to compensate for the loss in revenue of eliminating the income tax, according to a Georgia Budget and Policy Institute report. That is three times the current sales tax rate. The report states that this move would transfer wealth from the middle class to high-income individuals.

    Senate Democrats Nan Orrock and Ed Harbison, who are both members of the special committee, released a joint statement Monday criticizing the effort.

    “Republicans want to jack up taxes on the middle class to give rich people a massive handout. This handout will make raising a family, buying a house or running a business more expensive. Almost every Georgian would see their tax bill increase by a month’s worth of groceries. At the end of the day, they’re making the affordability crisis worse and saying they’re doing you a favor. Democrats on this committee are appalled by this wrongheaded, disastrous proposal,” read the statement.

  • Marjorie Taylor Greene says she regrets ‘toxic politics’ after criticism from Trump

    Marjorie Taylor Greene says she regrets ‘toxic politics’ after criticism from Trump

    Marjorie Taylor Greene says she regrets ‘toxic politics’ after criticism from Trump

    U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has changed her tune regarding political rhetoric that she now calls toxic. 

    Greene spoke with CNN on Sunday and apologized for participating in “toxic politics.”

    Greene said in the interview that she supported President Trump when no one else did and still is supportive of his campaign promises. However, she was hurt by comments Trump made, referring to her as a traitor.

    “Those are the types of words used that can radicalize people against me and put my life in danger,” she said in her interview with CNN. “His remarks, of course, have been hurtful. However, I have something in my heart that I think is incredibly important for our country, and that is to end the toxic fighting in politics.”

    The interview came after President Donald Trump called Greene “wacky” last Friday and said he would back another candidate for her seat in Congress. Greene immediately responded that Trump’s behavior was due to a text she sent him regarding the files of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

    Greene has been criticized for transphobic, racist and xenophobic comments in the past and has even indicated support for the execution of well-known Democrats.

    In the interview, CNN’s Dana Bash challenged Greene by saying that Trump’s comments towards Greene are not the first time he has used such rhetoric against prominent figures and that Greene only spoke out against them when they were directed at her. 

    Greene responded that the criticism was fair, and she apologized.

    “I’m sorry for taking part in the toxic politics. It’s very bad for our country,” she said.

    Since the death of Charlie Kirk, Greene said she has been thinking about the impacts of political rhetoric and the toxic fighting in Washington. 

    “We need to find a new path forward that is focused on the American people because as Americans, no matter what side of the aisle we’re on, we have far more in common than we have differences, and we need to be able to respect each other with our disagreements,” she said.

    Greene’s supporters in Rome, Georgia, are standing by her, according to 11 Alive’s Doug Richards who spoke with some of her supporters. Debra Sherman told him that she doesn’t want to choose between Greene and President Trump.

    “She tries to do right by all of us, and she stands beside us,” Sherman told Richards.

    Greene won reelection in the 14th Congressional District in 2024 with more than 64% of the vote, and she has already ruled out running for Senate or Governor in 2026.

    “She’s a strong representative. Sometimes she may be a little outspoken but at least she makes our district feel heard,” Landon Rikel told Richards.

  • Penny Elkins named Mercer University’s first woman president, succeeding William Underwood in 2026

    Penny Elkins named Mercer University’s first woman president, succeeding William Underwood in 2026

    Penny Elkins named Mercer University’s first woman president, succeeding William Underwood in 2026

    The first woman president of Mercer University will succeed the current president, William D. Underwood, on Jan. 1, 2026. 

    The Mercer board of trustees unanimously elected Penny L. Elkins on Nov. 14 as the 19th president of the institution, according to a news release.

    “To be called and entrusted to lead the institution that so profoundly shaped the trajectory of my life is deeply humbling. As a proud Double Bear, I can never fully repay what Mercer has given to me,” said Elkins in a news release. “I embrace with gratitude both the opportunity and the responsibility to steward Mercer’s mission with integrity, vision and purpose. Now more than ever, our world needs more Mercerians.”

    Elkins has served as a member of Mercer’s faculty and senior administration for more than 25 years and is the current executive vice president and interim provost.

    “I am confident that the University will thrive in the extremely capable hands of Dr. Penny L. Elkins,” said Cathy Callaway Adams, the incoming chair of the Board of Trustees, in the news release. “She will be an innovative, courageous and inspiring leader in carrying out Mercer University’s mission of preparing and equipping students for lives of discovery, empowerment, service and impact, and in the process, changing the world.”

    On the same day the board elected a new president to the university, they also named nine new trustees, including former Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal. 

    Deal, who served as governor of Georgia between 2011 and 2019, graduated from Mercer’s undergraduate and law programs, and he previously served on the board from 1994 to 1999, according to 13 WMAZ.

  • Judge Cuts Three Charges from Georgia Case Against Trump

    Judge Cuts Three Charges from Georgia Case Against Trump

    Judge Cuts Three Charges from Georgia Case Against Trump

    Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has narrowed the long list of accusations against former President Donald Trump and multiple co-defendants by removing three counts from Georgia’s 2020 election interference indictment. 

    In an order issued Friday, McAfee dismissed Counts 14, 15, and 27, which involved claims of conspiring to submit false paperwork and attempting to file fraudulent documents. Before the dismissals, Trump faced Counts 15 and 27.

    CBS News reports that McAfee’s concerns about these counts were not new. In March 2024, McAfee dismissed six other charges from the indictment; three charges applied to Trump. The judge also dropped two more charges pertaining to the case in September 2024.

    Despite the latest dismissals, the case remains significant. Thirty-two charges remain active, including a wide-ranging racketeering count that names 15 defendants.

    The same day Judge Scott McAfee dismissed three counts in Georgia’s election interference case, Peter J. Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, appointed himself to lead the prosecution. In a press release, Skandalakis revealed that his office was unable to find another prosecutor before McAfee’s deadline, which would have resulted in the indictment being dismissed. 

    Skandalakis wrote that “the public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case,” stressing the need for an informed and transparent decision on how to proceed. 

    Skandalakis’ new role in the case comes after former President Donald Trump issued pardons to all 18 co-defendants in this case, as well as other Georgia Republicans. Yet Trump’s pardons do not affect the pending state charges.

    Trump’s Georgia attorney, Steve Sadow, says his legal team “remains confident that a fair and impartial review will lead to a dismissal of the case.”

  • Sen. Ossoff seeks answers on potential cuts to care at Fort Gordon medical center

    Sen. Ossoff seeks answers on potential cuts to care at Fort Gordon medical center

    Sen. Ossoff seeks answers on potential cuts to care at Fort Gordon medical center

    U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff announced Thursday, Nov. 13,  that he has launched an inquiry into reports of reduced services at a Fort Gordon facility.

    Ossoff sent a letter to Dr. David Smith, the acting director of the Defense Health Agency, requesting information regarding reports over plans to reduce services at Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center (DDEAMC) at Fort Gordon.

    “Hospitals in Georgia are already facing cuts and closures of vital services,” Ossoff wrote. “I strongly urge DHA protect Eisenhower Army Medical Center from any proposed cuts to care.”

    The reported plans to reduce services include closing emergency room and operating room services at the facility, according to WJBF.

    The Eisenhower Army Medical Center serves between 30,000 to 40,000 active duty service members, retired military, their families, and Department of Defense civilians. DDEAMC has around 60 inpatient beds and six operating rooms, and employs around 1,500 people, according to the letter.

    Ossoff’s request comes after several months of advocating for Affordable Care Act subsidies. The letter references Medicaid cuts in President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act as the reason Georgia hospitals are struggling.

    Last month, St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital closed the doors on its labor and delivery unit, citing recent cuts to Medicaid as a reason for the closure.

    “This is what happens when you gut the Medicaid program,” Ossoff told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It defunds hospitals and nursing homes, and now, when pregnant women in northeast Georgia go into labor, they may have to drive an hour or an hour and a half to get care.”

  • Cobb, Fulton voters to decide six-way race in State Senate District 35 election

    Cobb, Fulton voters to decide six-way race in State Senate District 35 election

    Cobb, Fulton voters to decide six-way race in State Senate District 35 election

    Voters in Cobb and Fulton County will cast their ballots Tuesday in the special election for State Senate District 35. 

    The election was called after the resignation of State Senator Jason Esteves, who is running for governor in 2026.

    The crowded race includes four Democrats, one Republican and one independent. Here are the candidates and their campaign websites:

    According to the Georgia Campaign Finance System, former state Rep. Roger Bruce has raised the most money in the campaign at $37,302. Republican candidate, Joshua Tolbert, has the next highest total at $13,221. However, records show Tolbert has spent the least of the four candidates who have reported fundraising.

    Cobb and Fulton counties tend to favor Democratic candidates, giving Kamala Harris nearly 57% and 72% of the vote, respectively, in the 2024 general election.

    If no candidate receives 50% plus one vote, the special runoff election will be held Dec. 16, according to the Georgia Secretary of State office.

    This election comes just two weeks after the statewide elections for seats on the Georgia Public Service Commission.

  • Georgia PSC rejects delay request, outgoing commissioners will rule on Georgia Power expansion

    Georgia PSC rejects delay request, outgoing commissioners will rule on Georgia Power expansion

    Georgia PSC rejects delay request, outgoing commissioners will rule on Georgia Power expansion

    The current members of the Public Service Commission decided Friday that they would not delay their decision on a historic request from Georgia Power. 

    The Sierra Club and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy filed a motion on Wednesday, Nov. 12, to delay the hearing until the newly elected commissioners could take their seats. However, the PSC denied the motion.

    This means that the commission will make its final decision on Dec. 19 as planned, and the new commissioners Alicia Johnson and Peter Hubbard will not be able to participate. They will not take their seats until Jan. 1.

    Isabella Ariza, staff attorney for the Sierra Club, said PSC chairman Jason Shaw informed them that the commission denied their motion. Shaw cited the Sierra Club’s pledge not to delay the hearings as a reason for denying the motion and said changing commissioners at this point is not conducive to good decision-making, Ariza said.

    “We respectfully disagree with that, and we think that a 30-day extension for the hearing and deadlines in this case is nothing compared to the 45 years that the gas plants that Georgia Power is seeking to certify will remain online,” she said.

    The hearing involves a request from Georgia Power to add 10,000 megawatts of new power resources over the next five years, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The hearings will start Dec. 10, and the commission will rule on their request Dec. 19.

    The environmental groups argued that the size and scale of Georgia Power’s request were unprecedented and the recent election represented a rejection of the current PSC’s practices, according to a news release.

    Dr. Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, said the new commissioners have a right to vote on this decision.

    “When the voters finally got a chance to voice their opinion, they overwhelmingly voted for change,” he said. “It is tone-deaf and irresponsible for the commission to rush this decision through.”

    Smith said the commission has until March to make its decision regarding Georgia Power’s request. 

    “I think this is an issue about whether the commission is going to be looking out for the interests of the consumers that they are in charge of protecting and holding the company accountable,” he said.

    The public is invited to submit comments regarding Georgia Power’s expansion on the PSC’s website.

  • Government Shutdown Delays Helene Relief, Georgia Farmers in Limbo

    Government Shutdown Delays Helene Relief, Georgia Farmers in Limbo

    Government Shutdown Delays Helene Relief, Georgia Farmers in Limbo

    A year after Hurricane Helene tore through Georgia, farmers and timberland owners are still waiting for the federal relief they were promised. The government shutdown has stalled the process.

    In late September, Gov. Brian Kemp and Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a $531 million block grant for farmers, ranchers and timber producers impacted by the 2024 storm.

    But as The Current Georgia reported, the celebration came too soon. Harper said spending formulas and administrative groundwork were still unfinished when the federal government shut down, putting the agreement on hold before signatures could be exchanged.

    Losses beyond paperwork

    The financial and emotional hardship multiplied for farmers and producers waiting on aid. According to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, growers across the southern half of the state saw decades of work erased in hours. 

    In Berrien and Lowndes counties, for example, winds topping 110 mph uprooted mature pecan orchards that had taken 20 to 30 years to reach peak production. One grower reported losing 60% of his crop, along with millions of dollars in cleanup costs, replanting, irrigation repairs and years of lost income.

    Relief negotiations between the state and USDA continued for months. Georgia seeking coverage for commodities not traditionally included in federal disaster aid played a role in the delay. Officials with the Georgia Department of Agriculture told the Ledger-Enquirer that they spent hundreds of staff hours working with the University of Georgia Extension to document “multiple loss types across dozens of commodities.”

    Forests and farms damaged alike

    Beyond farms, Helene also dealt a massive blow to Georgia’s forests. The Georgia Forestry Commission estimated $1.28 billion in timber losses across 8.9 million acres, including 26 million tons of pine and 30 million tons of hardwood. Roughly 88% of the affected acreage belonged to private landowners.

    “For many landowners, these forests were not just trees — they were retirement plans, college funds or family legacies,” the Georgia Forestry Association wrote in its one-year report.

    Until the federal government reopens, farmers, ranchers and timberland owners remain stuck in the same pattern: waiting for help that has yet to arrive, bracing for another season without it.

  • Trump issues pardons for Fulton County defendants, GA political leaders

    Trump issues pardons for Fulton County defendants, GA political leaders

    Trump issues pardons for Fulton County defendants, GA political leaders

    President Donald Trump signed several pardons that include all 18 of his co-defendants in the Fulton County election interference case as well as prominent Georgia officials.

    Justice Department official Ed Martin posted photos of the proclamation on X early Monday morning.

    The proclamation states that it “ends a grave national injustice perpetrated upon the American people following the 2020 Presidential Election and continues the process of national reconciliation.”

    The move does not have any major impact on the Georgia racketeering case because no charges have been filed in federal court. The Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia has until Friday to name a new lead prosecutor for the Georgia case after the dismissal of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

    The pardons extend to all 16 Republican activists who met in December 2020 to sign false certificates stating Trump won the state. Those activists include Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who has Trump’s endorsement for the governorship in 2026, and State Sen. Shawn Still.

    Most of the electors struck immunity deals with prosecutors, but a state prosecutor refused to press charges against Jones, who was a state senator at the time. The prosecutor said Jones acted “in a manner consistent with his position,” according to the AJC.

    Several state and federal investigations into the 2020 elections found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in Georgia.

    People connected to Georgia named in Trump’s pardon:

    • Mark Amick
    • Joseph Brannan
    • James “Ken” Carroll
    • Brad Carver
    • Vikki Consiglio
    • John Downey
    • Carolyn Fisher
    • Kay Godwin
    • David Hanna
    • Mark Hennessy
    • Lt. Gov. Burt Jones
    • Cathy Latham
    • Daryl Moody
    • David Shafer
    • Sen. Shawn Still
    • C.B. Yadav

    Fulton County defendants named in the pardon

    • Kenneth Chesebro
    • Robert Cheeley
    • Jeffrey Clark
    • John Eastman
    • Jenna Ellis
    • Harrison Floyd
    • Rudy Giuliani
    • Scott Hall
    • Misty Hampton
    • Trevian Kutti
    • Cathy Latham
    • Stephen Lee
    • Mark Meadows
    • Sidney Powell
    • Mike Roman
    • David Shafer
    • Ray Smith
    • Sen. Shawn Still
  • Republicans, Democrats face off in two GA House special elections next month

    Republicans, Democrats face off in two GA House special elections next month

    Republicans, Democrats face off in two GA House special elections next month

    Election season is not over for a few Georgia counties. Two special elections will be held for state House seats on Dec. 9 with early voting starting on Nov. 17, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s website. 

    The election for House District 23 will be held in Cherokee County. Scott Sanders is the only Democratic candidate who has qualified for the race, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s website. There are five Republican candidates: Ann Gazell, Bill Fincher, Brice Futch, Rajpal “Raj” Sagoo, and William Ware. One person will need to receive 50% of the vote plus one to avoid a runoff, which will be held on Jan. 6, if necessary. 

    Here’s a little bit about each candidate:

    The election for House District 121 will be held in Clarke and Oconee counties. The qualified candidates are Republican Mack “Dutch” Guest IV and Democrat Eric Martin Gisler.

    • Mack “Dutch” Guest IV: He helps operate the LAD Truck Lines and lists his main priorities as improving transportation, strengthening education and keeping communities safe, according to the Georgia Recorder.
    • Eric Martin Gisler: He is a tech executive and small business owner and his platform centers on increasing access to health care, addressing affordable housing and strengthening voting rights, according to WABE.